We followed the Rio Grande River south toward the birding mecca of the lower Rio Grande Valley. In the morning, we saw Lark Buntings near our Marathon Campground. They were molting into their breeding plumage but still looked like large sparrows. In another month, the males will be jet black except for white wing bars.
Our highway cut through several hill tops and you could really see the different geological strata being laid down over the centuries.
A full day of driving through the Chihuahuan Desert brought us over the Pecos River and into the Seminole Canyon campground near dusk.
February 9
Seminole Canyon has ancient Aboriginal paintings on walls of several caves. On this day, a festival was happening which celebrated traditional Aboriginal crafts and skills. Fire making and rabbit stick tossing were my two favourite events.
120) White-throated Swifts were flying about the canyon.
In the afternoon, we had lunch beside Amistad Lake. After several years of drought the lake level was down more than 50 feet.
We spent the night in Laredo. The weather had changed. After a month of warm dry desert air we were suddenly in hot humid air that you could almost cut with a knife. We were getting close to the Gulf of Mexico.
February 10 and 11
We arrived early at Falcon Lake State Park RV campground. We did a birding tour around the campground and the butterfly garden. There were lots of birds that are Texas specialties.
The campground butterfly garden was alive with butterflies.
I was birding at the end of a brushy trail. Emma and Sona were coming down the trail to join me. From the bushes, a javelina challenged them so they spun round and headed back to the RV. Sona is great at flushing the wildlife; I should take her birding more.
Birding in Falcon Lake State Park is great and our campground hosts told us of a nearby bird sanctuary where we could see Altamira Orioles
February 12
We drove a few miles south of the Falcon Lake State Park to the Salinenos Bird Sanctuary. To get there you drive through a small, poor, mexican-style village. On a dirt road, we squeezed the RV between two adobe homes and followed the road till it ran straight into the Rio Grande.
Sona was not at all concerned about international borders and happily played "fetch a stick" in the Rio Grande.
When I mentioned that our road ran into the Rio Grande River, I was being quite literal. Here is Sona at the end of the road after a refreshing dip.
The Salineno Bird Sanctuary is great. Mexican birds don't realize they cross an international border when they fly over a little river to this obscure USA location.
We continued on down the Rio Grande to the Benson Rio State Park. This site is the headquarters of the World Birding Centre. We arrived late in the day but this little Screech Owl was still resting up for his evening hunt.
.
No comments:
Post a Comment